CM Punk’s Top 10 WWE Matches
By Tim Sherry
4. CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan – Over the Limit 2012
In April of 2004, Punk and Bryan met up in a match at Ring Of Honor: Reborn in which Bryan was victorious. They were seen as two of the best, young wrestling prospects in the country. The idea that eight years later, the two would meet up on a WWE pay-per-view for a world championship was absurd. But that’s exactly what happened at Over the Limit 2012.
This was the first of three PPV matches in a row (unfortunately the middle one also included Kane) that was very easily some of the best wrestling of 2012. The Money In The Bank match was a No DQ slugfest but this match was their masterpiece. It was an absolute mat classic, with both men digging deep into their move-sets to pull things out that they would rarely ever use again.
And it wasn’t just mat wrestling. The two exchanged heavy, stiff strikes and from the looks on both their faces, they wanted it bad. It was like they had gone into the past and rekindled their indy prowess. There were no gimmicks, no tricks, and there was a classic roll-up pinfall out of a submission by Punk for the victory.
As much as it’s painful to think that you may never see these two square off again here’s a tiny glimmer of hope. Numerous reports have recently come out saying that the WWE has not closed the door on a possible return to the ring for Bryan. And if September 10th goes the way I think it will for Punk, he might have no choice to go back to wrestling. Yeah, it’s far-fetched, but we can dream.
Next: No. 3